Forum looks at future of transportation

Posted February 26, 2009; 01:55 p.m.

by Staff

"Transportation and Infrastructure Issues for the Next Decade" is the subject of a forum scheduled for 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Friday, March 6, in Dodds Auditorium, Robertson Hall.

The current federal surface transportation bill -- which provides funding for expansion and repair of roadways, bridges and rail systems -- expires in September. The country's transportation infrastructure is plagued by congestion, deferred maintenance, and outdated and insufficient systems and infrastructure. At the same time, it faces new challenges related to energy, the environment and public health.

The forum will explore the status of the next surface transportation authorization legislation, opportunities for new financing sources and ways to link transportation to broader policy goals in energy, health and the environment.

Panelists will include the commissioners of transportation from New York City and the states of New York and New Jersey, as well as speakers from the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership, the Brookings Institution, the American Association of State and Transportation Officials and the Environmental Defense Fund.

The forum is sponsored by the Policy Institute for the Region in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, along with the Voorhees Transportation Center at Rutgers University and the Wagner Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management at New York University.